DIY NETWORK TACKLES HIGH-END HEAD-ON IN NEW PRIMETIME SERIES, "MILLION DOLLAR CONTRACTOR"

Original Program Explores Top Notch Renovations through the Eyes Of "Contractor to the Stars" Stephen Fanuka

NEW YORK - September 20, 2011 - New York City's premier contractor Stephen Fanuka, who is well-known for his work with the world's top designers, architects and celebrity clientele, including Thom Filicia, Nate Berkus, Francois Catroux, Jacques Grange, Eric Cohler, Nancy Bozhardt, Tyra Banks, Tony Bennett, Michael J. Fox and Lindsay Lohan, is hosting his first national television series with the launch of DIY Network's Million Dollar Contractor, premiering Sunday, Oct. 16 at 10 p.m. ET. A half-hour series dedicated to giving viewers a behind-the-scenes look at some of the most amazing spaces and construction of Manhattan's high-end luxury homes, Million Dollar Contractor focuses on the details, the materials and the insane amount of money clients spend to allow Fanuka, the "Contractor to the Stars," to create million dollar projects.

"I'll give you the inside track on the fast pace world of high-end interior residential renovations," said Fanuka. "With Million Dollar Contractor, I'll show you the way the best designers, architects and vendors think outside the box while giving you the know-how to do-it-yourself or hire the right contractor. Your home is your castle, and I'll show you how to treat it like one."

DIY Network's Million Dollar Contractor features home renovation projects that are unlike anything seen before. During each episode, Fanuka takes his clients opulent "wish list" and makes them a reality with expensive one-of-a-kind materials. He brings unimaginable ideas to the table, such as:

· Turning a $10 million, three-bedroom penthouse in Manhattan's West Village into the ultimate bachelor pad, including extensive custom work of a stunning, 700-pound walnut pivot door to drastically change the shape and flow of the condo.

· Overhauling a pre-war home on New York's Upper West Side including handmade flooring featuring four different species of wood and a price tag of over $100,000; a master bathroom decorated in floor-to-ceiling granite slabs, and a kitchen made from Anigre, a rare and beautiful African hardwood.

· Tackling both the public and private spaces of a huge apartment in New York's Upper East Side featuring handmade Venetian plaster moldings, custom pocket doors, Fanuka's trademark custom cabinetry, Thassos pure white marble, and concealed LED hallway lights.

· Creating the best listening room in the world for an international pop star's 18,000 sq. foot apartment to include special acoustic fabrics and building materials, and engineers' tests to confirm perfect audio clarity.

· Building a solarium on the roof of a Central Park West apartment building more than 17 stories above New York City.

· Delivering "Million Dollar" quality on a fraction of the price by renovating and updating a public school teacher's studio apartment.

Million Dollar Contractor also features popular interior designer and talk show host, Nate Berkus, who calls upon Fanuka to redo his new Greenwich Village townhouse. Fanuka fills the library with 11-foot high bookcases, installs customized steel doors and even an antique-style French fireplace. The skilled contractor also works with designer Thom Filicia on a Central Park West apartment, where they create a completely new gourmet kitchen and upgrade a suite for the homeowner's mother-in-law.

To succeed as a contractor in New York, a few favors have to be done and in one episode, Fanuka helps his friends, designers Ed Ku and Etienne Coffinier, as they design and build a room for the 2010 Kips Bay Decorator's Show House. With only two weeks to transform a featureless room into an elegant living space, he pulls out all the stops to execute Ed and Etienne's vision and in doing so, impress the design community.

The highly sought-after Fanuka, who turned his father's custom cabinet shop into a prestigious contracting firm for luxury interior renovations, demonstrates time and again why he's the man for the job. Although his clients have differing tastes and styles, they have one thing in common - they all expect the transformation to be perfect. Although it's not always smooth sailing, Fanuka pulls out all the stops to create the kind of end result that satisfies even the toughest critics. His mission is still as simple as when he started Fanuka, Inc. "Give the client what they paid for, a first-rate job with class-A service. Make the experience a pleasurable one - one that the client will positively remember. Chances are he will tell a friend and they'll tell a friend."

Despite the hefty price tag of his high-end interior renovations, many of the same issues and problems on-site also occur in the homes of everyday people. Fanuka shares tips and tricks of the trade that first time DIYers and home improvement aficionados will appreciate in DIY Network's Million Dollar Contractor and in his new book, "What's a Homeowner to Do? 442 Things You Should Know" (Artisan Books, November 22, 2011, $17.95, Paperback Original), co-authored with The New York Times Magazine columnist Edward Lewine.

ABOUT DIY NETWORK

DIY Network, from the makers of HGTV and Food Network, is the go-to destination for rip-up, knock-out home improvement television. DIY Network's programs and experts answer the most sought-after questions and offer creative projects for do-it-yourself enthusiasts. One of the fastest growing digital networks and currently in more than 53 million homes, DIY Network's programming covers a broad range of categories, including home improvement and landscaping. The network's award-winning website, www.DIYNetwork.com, is a leader in the Nielsen Online Home and Garden category and features multiple resources, including thousands of do-it-yourself home improvement projects, expert advice, how-to videos and images, and user-friendly reference guides with step-by-step instructions.